10 Questions With Dave Tucker

Dave Tucker, CEO, CLIP Software, answers 10 questions about the industry.

QUESTIONS
1. Where does software fit in today's landscape industry? Is the industry becoming more tech-savvy?

Software is becoming as vital as equipment. What good is it to be able to cut people's grass but then lose the invoice or forget to charge for it? As they say, the job is never done until the paperwork is finished. Software helps the landscaper with marketing, pricing and estimates. Software helps the landscaper before he even loads up his equipment by helping him know which jobs need to be done, when and where. Most people today understand that technology is here to stay and is a crucial part of their business.

2. According to your research or discussions with software users, how many hours a day is the average contractor spending on the computer – whether it's online or using software or networking with other contractors via message boards? Has this increased over the years?

The average contractor is spending anywhere from one-half hour to eight hours on the computer. Some of the landscape contractors who have been afraid of computers are now "hooked" on them. The sense of community that the Internet has brought has really helped business owners that thought they were alone in this business but now know that they have many peers.

The amount of computer usage has increased dramatically. It seems like just a short period of time ago, people did not even own a computer and needed to purchase one to run our software. That is no longer the case. The assumption has changed completely to accepting the fact that customers and potential customers already own a computer. We are getting closer and closer to the assumption that people are connected to the Internet but we still have some cases where this is not so.
 
3. Is there less fear of the computer in this industry now than there was five or 10 years ago? Please explain.

The landscaper has had to learn to use them but also the new generation is completely at ease with computers now. Most people who did not grow up with computers now have children that consider it a commodity. We have seen where these children will help their parents learn to use the computer. Ten years ago, only the more courageous people had computers and used them.

4. Do you feel this industry is moving into new technology fast enough or as fast as it should or does the industry have a way to go when it comes to technology? Please explain.

The industry in general is a little slow in adapting to specialized information technology. In general this industry has great respect for machines and mechanics but it is becoming more apparent to the industry that information is very valuable. There is a limited reception of specialized information management software but that is changing. I believe that as competition heats up, it will be the obvious reaction to turn to more efficient information management that will give the landscaper the edge he needs to keep his profits high.
 
5. How far is the landscape industry ahead of other industries when it comes to utilizing software in their businesses? How do they compare to other industries?

There are some service industries that are way behind the green industry. The green industry has had to adopt information technology faster than some of the other service industries because of the inherent nature of green services. Variables, such as weather, turf conditions, regulations and labor pool, all contribute to making it difficult to predict all aspects of the business. Services that are not affected by weather or do not have the "crisis" nature of plants that continue to grow every day, can take a little more time to figure out their information needs. The green industry cannot afford such a luxury.
 
6. In your view, what are the challenges currently facing the industry? How can the industry tackle these problems?

The current challenge will be two-fold: labor and economy. The labor issue is always a difficult one but it is being solved through H2B programs and other ways of importing labor. It seems like there is no end of opportunity for sales in the maintenance area but the labor pool is never large enough. The savvy company will realize that with the limited labor pool they should make sure that they get top dollar for the labor hours that they have. This is a great opportunity for profit. The Economy has a greater effect on landscape construction companies vs. landscape maintenance companies. The landscape construction company needs to find individuals and companies that are willing to spend big money on projects. This has been increasingly difficult over the past 18 months and doesn't seem to be letting up anytime too soon. The adjustment here is to spend more money on marketing to get the smaller jobs. It makes for a less profitable year but, nonetheless, profitable.
 
7. In your view, what service will grow more quickly than others this year and why?

The residential maintenance will continue to grow very quickly. More and more consumers are accepting the idea of having someone do their lawn. This is a trend that will really take off in the next two years. There really is not a lot of competition in the residential maintenance arena. Commercial maintenance is getting satiated, and the landscape contractor will find more and more that when he submits his bid there are a few other bids already on the table. But in the residential market he might be the only company to come out and do an estimate.

8. Will the economy and war have a negative affect on the industry this year or a positive one or no affect at all? Why do you feel this way?

The economy has not recovered from 9/11 and it will continue to affect us. The effect will be negative in the fact that consumers will be more conservative with their money. But there will also be a positive effect in that companies that have gone through this period are stronger and leaner than before. With the war almost over and things getting back to normal and people starting to demand more and more services, the future looks very good for us.

9. As a businessperson, what words of advice can you give landscape contractors from the business management side of things?

1. Systematize everything. Make sure that everything is in a system so that details do not get overlooked. The goal should be to be able to walk away from your business for months at a time without it missing a beat.
2. Hire the best people you can. Do everything you can to get and keep good talent. With good people your job will get easier.
3. Empower your people. Make sure that you are willing to delegate and let go of decisions.
4. Measure everything. You get what you inspect, not what you expect. Have reports that come back to you with specifics on all aspects of your business. Turn everything into numbers, this will not only help you get the information you need, it will also motivate your employees because they will know that you will notice their hard work.
 
10. Many small contractors as they grow their revenue and hire more people have a hard time delegating different responsibilities. So, they end up wearing many hats and working many hours - losing focus of the business. What advice can you offer contractors on proper and efficient delegation?

See my answer to Question No. 9. I believe that the more you do the four practices above, the easier it will be to delegate. As with anything, practice makes perfect. As you start delegating small portions of your company and you get good results, you will be willing to delegate more and so on. If you have the right systems and measurements in place, problems will show up very quickly and be able to be dealt with before becoming major.

The author is Managing Editor of Lawn & Landscape magazine and can be reached at nwisniewski@lawnandlandscape.com.